


strike us just like matches (cause everyone deserves the flames)

by mintables



Category: Granblue Fantasy (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, M/M, but happy pride everybody!!! i love them, get it cause he has wings...., sandalphon is an excellent wingman, sandy n vira are my two absolute favs and i think theyd be cute friends!!, this is rlly so self-indulgent and ooc, working title of this in my google docs is gay/lesbian solidarity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-02
Updated: 2019-06-02
Packaged: 2020-04-06 20:01:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19069663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mintables/pseuds/mintables
Summary: It’s not that she’s cold towards them- no, she’s plenty sweet, even when her smiles seem stiff and forced. It’s clear she’s trying, but… when the others group together, he can see her hang back. Her eyes are too often unfocused, too often deeply, deeply sad. The only times he sees her perk up, really, truly smile, are when Katalina’s around.It’s not too hard for him to recognize someone exactly like himself.





	strike us just like matches (cause everyone deserves the flames)

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY PRIDE MONTH EVERYONE!! as a colossal lesbian i feel as though im entitled to write a super self-indulgent fic of my two favorite characters being friends (ft. my dream light team, like the filthy light main i am. out of these units i only have sandy noa and seruel but i like to believe one day i'll have albert grand vira and summer naoise too) so teehee!
> 
> (yeah for the title i just put fob on shuffle and chose a lyric from the first song that popped up. and what about it)

She looks tired.

It’s always the first thing Sandalphon notices about her- about Vira, his teammate, who the captain’s been sending him on missions with for a little while now. He’s been working on trying to connect with the others in the group, trying to forge friendships, and for the most part, it’s gone all right. He’d vaguely recognized Noa, the little primal, as the creator of the ship, and since then he’s learned that he’s just as sweet as he likes to drink his coffee- all cream and so much sugar it’s barely coffee at all anymore. 

Seruel, meanwhile, prefers tea, but they’ve chatted, as well, and he’s been nothing but kind- befitting of a prince, Sandalphon thinks. He knows Naoise and Albert well enough by now, too; after all, those two and the other knights had been instrumental in helping fight back Lucilius for the final time. Still, he can’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy every time he watches Naoise and Seruel when they think eyes are off them- it’s painfully obvious how happy they are together. He tries not to think of Lucifer.

Vira, though, keeps her distance, for the most part. He doesn’t think they’ve held a conversation much more than shouting to each other on the battlefield or exchanging pleasantries over breakfast, but then again, he doesn’t think he’s seen her do much more with any of the others, either. It’s not that she’s cold towards them- no, she’s plenty sweet, even when her smiles seem stiff and forced. It’s clear she’s trying, but… when the others group together, he can see her hang back. Her eyes are too often unfocused, too often deeply, deeply sad. The only times he sees her perk up, really, truly smile, are when Katalina’s around.

It’s not too hard for him to recognize someone exactly like himself.

Today’s no different- he watches her slip into the kitchens with a murmur of a hello, smile plastered on despite the bags under her eyes betraying her. The others don’t seem to notice, but- he’s been there, he thinks, although he can’t be sure. He wants to help, at least.

He thinks Lucifer would’ve done the same.

Vira looks surprised when he slides into the seat next to her, offering her a mug of coffee with a smile. She takes it delicately, and he can’t help but notice how her hands shake, a little.

“…Thank you,” she says, after a moment, like she’s only just remembered to speak. God, he probably has been in the same place as wherever she is right now.

He nods. “Of course.” He pauses. “…It helps.”

She glances sideways at him, expression partly puzzled and partly frightened; frozen, almost. “…Helps?” She repeats softly.

“When you’re… tired.” He emphasizes the word as best he can, hoping he can convey some sincerity in his eyes that might get through to her.  _ When nights are too hard,  _ he means.  _ When you don’t dare to face your dreams because all you’ll see is blood on your hands _ . “I don’t mean to presume, but… I- I’ve-“ He cuts himself off, not sure what to say. He doesn’t want to pressure her into talking, doesn’t want to push her any further away.

He just wants to let her know that she’s not the only one.

Vira hardly reacts as he fumbles, instead choosing to take a sip of the coffee. A tentative smile spreads over her lips as she places the mug down. “It’s delicious,” she says softly. It’s an acceptance, he can tell; an allowance for him to continue to trespass the rift that usually keeps her so far from the rest of the team. He smiles back at her.

“If you ever need more coffee, you know where to find me.”

“Of course… Thank you, Sandalphon.”

 

A few days pass; Vira seems to be doing better than usual. She’s been talking more with the crew, lately- he’d heard her and Seruel chatting about their respective duties as leaders of their people, and had watched Katalina smile fondly at the back of her head. The twinge of longing in his heart- he doesn’t think it’ll ever really get better, how much he misses Lucifer- is dulled a little by the fact that he’s genuinely happy for her. He hopes she can have with Katalina what he will not be able to have with Lucifer for a very long time.

Vira comes by his cafe later that night, looking… less tired, he thinks, than before. “Same coffee as last time?” He asks before she has even closed the door behind her. Lucifer would probably tell him to work on his customer service, wrap a wing around his shoulders to let him know he was joking, kiss him softly on the cheek and press his smile to his skin. 

He only realizes he is zoning out as Vira nods an affirmation.

“I wanted to thank you for a few days ago,” she says. Her voice is as soft as ever; he’s beginning to realize it’s just how she talks. There’s a quiet submission to it- it’s the voice of someone who has been through hell and back and lost a part of themselves along the way.

It’s something akin to his own voice, in the time after Lucifer’s death.

He shakes his head. “It was nothing. I didn’t want to intrude, but… you looked like you were someplace I know all too well. I-“ Embarrassed, he realizes once more that he doesn’t entirely know what to say, and busies himself fixing her a cup. Emotions are… difficult. He still sometimes finds himself wishing Lucifer were here to guide him.

She sighs a little, taking the cup gently from him. “I get the feeling you might understand, at least a little,” she whispers. It seems to be a huge admittance for her; the words are rushed, hurried, and she can’t meet his gaze. His heart swells with warmth.

“I do.”

 

He and Vira don’t talk for a few days- she gets sent on a mission with the girl with the katanas (Narmaya, he thinks) and the erune man who refuses to show his face- and they don’t return for a while. He hasn’t thought much about their conversation until she pushes open the door to his cafe again far too early on a Monday morning- but then again, if it were too early for him he wouldn’t be there, and here he was.

He spots the bags under her eyes the moment she walks in and is pushing a cup her way before she even reaches the counter. There’s something dull in her gaze- something dangerous, but not for anyone but herself.

She takes the coffee and he can feel she’s going to pull away, going to isolate herself, but- he’d done the same, for too long, and it had been a living hell. This mission may have left her exhausted, but he isn’t about to let her leave and face the solitude of her room just yet. He calls out out to her before she can go.

“Vira- wait.”

She turns to him, lips parted as if a protest had risen in her throat and died on her lips in the time it took to turn. He gestures towards a stool in front of the counter, one Rosetta and Io had helped him to pick out at the market and Rackam had helped him to install. He’s blessed with good friends- he needs to make sure she knows they’re her friends, too. “Wait a moment.”

She bites her lip, looking like she’s about to leave, but also like she’d hoped he would ask her to stay. She’s frozen in place for a long moment before approaching and slowly settling herself on the stool. They’re both silent for only an instant before she takes a deep breath and breaks it, voice quiet and raspy. “Was- was Lucifer to you the way Katalina is for me?” she asks, staring straight into her cup. He bites his lip hard.

“And what exactly does Katalina mean to you?” he responds, trying not to let his voice shake. He gets the feeling Vira has no idea how to open up to people, and he doesn’t either; this conversation seems to be careening headfirst into territory neither of them are going to know how to get out of, but he thinks that’s a risk he’s willing to take- it’s much preferable to the other option, because he’s not about to let himself leave her alone. Not right now, not when she seems as exhausted, as fragile, as she is.

“Everything,” Vira responds without hesitation. “Katalina means everything to me.” Talking about Katalina seems to be easier for her; she pauses only to sip coffee a moment before she continues. “She’s… clarity, when everything else is chaos. She’s a focal point, when I don’t think I can…” She trails off and shakes her head. Whatever she was about to say seems to be a little too much. 

“She makes everything easier. Before her, there was nothing- nothing that mattered. She’s given me… a purpose, something to live for… no matter how many mistakes I’ve made, she’s always forgiven me. She’s helped me find a place in this crew, helped me find friends,  _ family _ … I don’t know where I would be without her.” She smiles softly. “Katalina has made my life worth something. There’s no volumes to describe how important she is to me.”

Sandalphon’s throat feels altogether too tight. He blinks hard- something behind his eyes is building, hot and wet, and he doesn’t want to let the tears fall. “I…” His voice sounds rough, foreign to his own ears. “That’s  _ exactly _ what Lucifer is to me.” It feels a little unreal that anyone could possibly understand, and yet- here Vira is.

She lifts her chin at him- a prompt to continue, to elaborate. Despite the choking feeling in his throat, he’s glad to do so.

“Lucifer… was the only one who had… made me feel like I meant something. The time we spent together… it still astounds me, how lucky I got. How much he adores- adored me. He made me feel… like I wasn’t worthless, like I… belonged somewhere. Belonged with him. He never once looked down on me.” He laughs a little shakily, a little bitterly. “I realize now that the only one who ever thought we were not equals… was myself. He- he’ll always be my guiding light, always be the one thing I look towards. I’ll never stop loving him.” 

The admittance makes him feel a little lighter, a little freer, even as the tears can’t quite be held back anymore. He scrubs furiously at his eyes with the back of his hand, but offers Vira a smile nevertheless, one she returns. Her eyes, too, look bright. 

Neither of them say much more after that, but the silence is comfortable; they don’t  _ need  _ to say much more. Vira gets up to leave once she finishes her cup, murmuring a quick  _ thank you,  _ and he lets her go, waving to her retreating back with a smile. Something in his chest feels warmer than it has in a long while- it’s no small miracle, he thinks, to find someone who understands.

 

He and Vira chat more frequently, the next few weeks- she becomes something of a regular at the coffee shop, and he finds himself looking forward to her visits more and more often. She doesn’t always stay long, but always visits early; sometimes, she’ll tell him about her nightmares, shaking hands stilled around the warmth of a mug.

Sometimes, he’ll tell her about his.

Sandalphon is no stranger to pining, to dancing around a relationship until it becomes far too late to do anything about it, and the longer he and Vira talk, the more he resolves to see her and Katalina through. He won’t let her make the same mistakes he had with Lucifer.

“Are you ever going to let Katalina know? How much she means to you?” he asks softly, on one of their usual mornings. Vira stiffens, eyes widening at the idea.

“Oh- oh no, I- I mean, she does know that I- I care deeply about her,” she says, voice soft but rising in pitch. “Of course she knows-”

“Does she know how  _ much?”  _ he asks softly. “Vira, I can see how she looks at you. I lost so much time with Lucifer… don’t make the same mistake.”

She won’t meet his gaze. “I… I don’t want to jeopardize what we have, right now,” she murmurs. “She’s  _ happy, _ when we’re together, and… I don’t want to change that if… if she doesn’t…”

“Katalina would  _ never  _ be upset with you, Vira. We both know that,” he says, lips quirking up, almost a smile. “She forgave  _ me,  _ after everything… you know she would never hold you at fault. And…” he glances at her outfit, a simple white dress that she’s been wearing more often lately. “Remind me again who got you that dress?”

She blinks slowly at him, then smiles softly. “You may have a point. But… I still…”

“Isn’t it worth it to try? Isn’t  _ she  _ worth it?” he asks. “If I could go back- if I could make myself see that Lucifer always felt the same-” He bites his lip. He’s gotten better at managing it, lately, but the ache in his heart still rears its head nearly too often.

Vira furrows her brow and reaches for his hand. He lets her take it, lets her clasp it gently between her own- a small comfort, between friends, one he is grateful for. “I… alright. You really think she’d…”

“The way she looks at you is no mistake.” Her eyes go soft, a little hopeful, and he hopes against all hope that he is not wrong. “It’s the way I… the way  _ Lucifer…” _ he can’t bring himself to continue, and Vira’s grip on his hand tightens, but he offers her a smile nevertheless. “You deserve to be happy, Vira. You deserve to offer yourself that much forgiveness.”

“And you deserve to offer yourself the same,” she breathes, but she’s smiling. Sandalphon feels his own face soften- oh, she is far kinder than this world has been to her.

“I’m trying,” he says, and it’s an honest answer. He feels a little raw with it, but… he  _ is  _ trying, every day, not just because it’s what Lucifer would have wanted, or the captain, but because  _ he  _ wants it, too. It feels… good, to admit to himself.

Vira nods. “That’s all either of us can do.” Setting her cup down, she stands. “...Thank you, as always, for the coffee, Sandalphon.” Her smile is a little lighter as she turns and walks out his door.

 

The next time Vira returns to his shop, Katalina comes with her.

He does not miss the furtive way they glance at each other as they both settle on stools in front of the counter, nor the way Katalina reaches for her hand once they sit. His heart feels light as he flashes Vira a knowing smile.

“Katalina, how would you like your coffee?” he asks, sliding Vira her cup- he’s been preparing her coffee before she arrives, lately. Katalina smiles fondly at Vira like she’s the only person in the room before answering.

“What would you recommend?” she asks, and Sandalphon knows she’s not talking to him. Vira flushes a little, smiling wide.

“I think you’d like the new blend,” she says, and her voice is stronger than he has ever heard it. “It’s not overly sweet, but it still tastes fine as it is-  _ oh,”  _ she cuts off, flushing darker as Katalina casually lifts their joined hands and presses a kiss to her knuckles.

“That sounds perfect,” she smiles, and Vira nods, looking a little dizzy. Sandalphon can’t help the grin that spreads over his face as he busies himself preparing Katalina’s cup. He can hear the two of them murmuring to each other behind him, heads bent close, and the low buzz of conversation makes his chest a little tight.

He wishes he could share one more cup of coffee with Lucifer, he always  _ will,  _ but… as he hands Katalina her cup and watches her lean close to Vira with a smile, he feels overwhelmingly happy for his friends. His  _ friends,  _ who he could not have come this far without, who he… has  _ helped. _

He thinks, watching Vira offer Katalina a sip of her coffee, that she doesn’t look quite so tired, anymore.  _ He _ doesn’t feel so tired, either. It’s… nice.

_ Lucifer… if you could see this now, would you be proud? _

Vira beckons him towards the conversation with a grin and a laugh, and he goes willingly.

_ I know you would. _

_ I am, too. _

**Author's Note:**

> im keeling over..... finals start tomorrow and here i am. at any rate hmu on twitter @ylissebian where u can watch me cry my way to seox's 5* in real time!


End file.
